The most memorable P.E./gym teachers in fiction

Mr. Shoop (Mark Harmon) might put out that beach-bum vibe, but deep down, he cares about his students. Now, he's technically a high-school gym teacher, but the plot of this 1987 classic has Shoop taking to a summer-school classroom. Looking to secure his teaching tenure, Shoop is forced to turn around a group of underachieving academic misfits. Of course, and hilariously, that wasn't going to be easy. Shoop even had his car damaged and was arrested. He was finally able to motivate the group, help his own personal cause, and even find love. 

Let's go back to the mid-1980s for this entertaining comedy about teenager Terri Griffith (Joyce Hyser), who goes undercover as a male high-school student to prove girls are treated more unfairly than her male classmates. Lost in the mix of various characters that we are introduced to is Coach Morrison (played brilliantly by unassuming character actor John Apicella). He wears a bowling shirt while teaching his P.E. classes, and doesn't seem to have any respect for his students — which, in a warped way, is entertaining. 

Chris Meloni might be best known for his work on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, but back in 2008 he played the lead role in this forgotten made-for-television comedy movie that aired on Nickelodeon. A failed gymnast with Olympic dreams, Dave Stewie is now teaching middle-school P.E., and poised to be named Gym Teacher of the Year. Mr. Stewie, with his tight shorts, can be overzealous at times when it comes to his profession, but only because this seems to be all he has going in a rather middling life.

Highly underrated, Sarah Thyre's Cherri Wolff might have been the under-the-radar star of this hilarious Amy Sedaris vehicle that ran on Comedy Central for three seasons from 1999-2000. A supportive and friendly girls' P.E. teacher, Coach Wolf also is a health instructor, as most gym teachers tend to be in the American public high school system — and especially of the fictional variety. And, when it comes to explaining the intimacy between a male and female, well, not many get graphically straight to the point like Coach Wolf.

Not all male P.E. teachers, fictional or in real life, are lazy or sleazy. Mr. Gettis (Jason Segel) is certainly one of the good ones. Unfortunately, he has a thing for the unhinged, uninterested Elizabeth Halsey (Cameron Diaz), a fellow teaching colleague at John Adams Middle School in this 2011 comedy. Even though he takes pride in his job and generally likes the kids, Elizabeth isn't impressed, quipping: "You still a gym teacher?" when he asks her out for a bite to eat. Give Russell credit, though — he doesn't stop trying in his pursuit of love.

The gym teacher at Springfield Elementary, with a last name like Pommelhorst, she had no choice but to go into this line of work. Talk about nominative determinism. Mrs. Pommelhorst was a hard-driving educator, and demanded plenty of her students when it came to their physical performance. Pommelhorst once left a little girl hanging on the gymnastics rings. She also had one of the more interesting story arcs during the iconic, animated series' marathon run, In which she left school to undergo a sex-change operation and returned as Mr. Pommelhorst. 

Comedian Mark Curry had himself a hit series during the mid-1990s with this popular ABC sitcom, a fixture of the network's vaunted 'TGIF' lineup for five seasons. His Mr. Cooper was a former NBA player (with the Golden State Warriors — before they won championships), who then became a high school P.E. teacher. He also served as a substitute teacher and coached basketball. Mr. Cooper was an overall good guy: funny, easy-going, and really caring towards his students and fellow staff members. Even if it seemed like he did not take his job — or life — all that seriously. 

Played by the extremely funny and highly underappreciated Julie Brown, Ms. Stoeger is a no-nonsense physical education teacher who does not care about the size of anyone's bank account or popularity status. Sure, Ms. Stoeger probably likes the hefty pay check she takes home for teaching at a high school in a wealthy neighborhood. But, when we see the the teeth she has to pull for her stuck-up students to play tennis in gym class, it's obvious she wants to be somewhere else. Or at least doing something more with her life.

One of the more recent inclusions on our list. This 2022 British drama is likely off the radar for most, but actress Rosy McEwen earned critical acclaim for her portrayal of Jean, a physical education teacher from Newcastle during the late 1980s. Jean continues to hide her homosexuality from her fellow school colleagues, students and even her own sister. It's not easy, but the conflict that Jean films, and the desire to break free and alert the world of her true self, is emotionally discharged through McEwen's performance. Also, American viewers will be introduced to the game netball.  

Now, Sue (Jane Lynch) has taken on many roles within the hallways of McKinley High School — for better or worse. Sue might have been a successful cheerleading coach at the school, but she's not a very nice person nor dependable staff member who claimed to teach gym. We think Sue's social issues, power trip, and contempt are drawn from jealousy of those who have friends. While she tended to make life miserable for Mr. Schuester and his glee-club kids, Sue desperately wanted to be accepted. Now, she did have a soft spot for mentally-challenged student Becky Jackson, whose unconditional love toward Sue was impressive.   

Viewers were first introduced to Coach Lubbock (Bill Kirchenbauer), who served as a high school gym/health teacher to Mike (Kirk Cameron) and Carol (Tracey Gold) Seaver on the 1980s'/'90s ABC hit Growing Pains. Then, the hilariously volatile, often over-his-head, yet lovable teacher, got his own show (Just the Ten of Us) when he moved his family west to teach at a Catholic school. Coach Lubbock could be high-strung, but give the guy a break. He had to a juggle a full-time job and gaggle of kids to survive. His work is quite admirable.

A nemesis from his days at Queens' Kennedy High School, and featured in the famed Season 3 episode known as "The Library," Mr. Heyman (Bill Yeager) was a gruff and mean gym/health teacher who tormented a teenage George Costanza, enough to flunk him in P.E. class. Heyman purposely mispronounced George's last name: "Can't stand ya." And if that wasn't bad enough, he had George's classmates give him a wedgie. Years later, when George recognized a homeless Heyman hanging out on the steps of a branch of the New York Public Library, the down-on-his-luck teacher still got the best of his former student.

The hard-nosed, by-the-book, P.E. teacher and coach, Beulah Balbricker (Nancy Parsons) is the epitome of the strict and surly educator. She also has hardly any sense of humor, and essentially hates all the boys in gym classes at Angel Beach High. However, by the third installment of this famed 1980s comedy film trilogy, Porky's Revenge!, we actually see a human, much-softer side to Miss Balbricker as she attempts to find love of her own — thanks in part to those students she long despised. 

As we've noted already on this list, it's nothing new for a former professional athlete to turn to teaching when their playing days have come to pass. In the case of washed-up, former Major League Baseball star pitcher Kenny Powers (Danny McBride), returning to his hometown to teach middle-school physical education (and not even on a full-time basis), is a downright embarrassment, considering he shunned the community when he made it big as a ballplayer. As Kenny eyes a big-league comeback, his school responsibilities tend to take a backseat to everything else, which is a shame — but certainly quite entertaining.

This animated comedy series debuted on Netflix in 2017, and from the get-go, Coach Steve stole the show. Voiced by series co-creator Nick Kroll, the whiny-sounding Coach Steve is a middle-school gym teacher whose students might be more intelligent than him. He's goofy, immature, never shuts up, gives advice that makes no sense and always seems to be looking for a friend — of any age. Yet, Steve tends to consistently provide the most memorable moment(s) of just about every episode throughout the course of the series.

It's rare that a gym teacher and chairman of the physical education department also runs the high school's math and science curriculum. However, we're talking about Highland High in the world of Beavis and Butt-Head. Buzzcut, who has a military background — and it shows — is the quintessential hard-åss teacher, who likes to belittle his students, is an unabashed authoritarian, does not play well with other adults and is totally in your face. Now, that does not stop Beavis and Butt-Head from getting under his skin.

Actor Tom Wilson is arguably best known for his role as legendary bully Biff in the Back to the Future franchise of films. However, he played one of the more memorable characters during the one season of this underappreciated comedy series from 1999-2000. Ben Fredricks teaches gym and coaches basketball at McKinley High. A big fan of dodgeball, Coach Fredricks can be a bit strict and downright mean at times, but he's actually there for his students. Especially when it comes taking young Sam (John Francis Daley) and his classmates on the journey known as sex education.

Coach Mellor (Bryan Callen) might think his job is more important than it is, but who can blame him. He had quite a lot of pull and say when it came to the everyday working of William Penn High in suburban Philadelphia. Coach Mellor, who can be demanding (in a goofy way) also likes to rib, put down and ride the three Goldberg children. Whom he has come up with nicknames for: Erica ("Girl Goldberg") and Adam ("Goldfarb). Though, not so deep down, Mellor has a special place in his heart for Adam (Sean Giambrone) and Barry (Troy Gentile) Goldberg.

One of the more underrated characters from this iconic Fred Savage television sitcom, Ed Cutlip (Robert Picardo) was a junior high gym teacher who took his job quite seriously, but was rather insecure. He talks as if he's running a military platoon, and seemed to have little concern for the emotional well-being of students when it came to his demands on their physical health. Mr. Cutlip always wore a rep cap (presumably to cover his balding head). However, as we learn throughout the series, the gruff Cutlip has a softer side, like when he played Santa Claus at a local department store. 

A harsh disciplinarian. Come on, who are we kidding. Mr. Jasper Woodcock (Billy Bob Thornton) is a physical education teacher who takes pride in bullying his students. Some think that it's a valuable trait in educating high-school youth — just not John Farley (Seann William Scott), who is trying to get his mother to stop dating Woodcock. That's where some serviceable hilarity ensues. Now, this movie came out in 2007, and the idea of a teacher being this harsh to his students today seems downright unthinkable, Unless, of course, they want to keep hearing complaints from disgruntled and entitled parents.